Here, we explore how to start a fitness journey that is sustainable, joyful, and rooted in true wellness.
Embarking on a fitness journey is about so much more than just hitting the gym or buying a new pair of running shoes. It’s about creating a lifestyle that aligns with your values, priorities, and personal goals.
For professional women, balancing a busy and often stressful career with wellness can feel overwhelming. But with the right mindset, strategies, and tools, you can craft a fitness journey that not only lasts but also enhances every area of your life.
Below, we provide nine practical tips plus empowering insights to keep you on track long-term.
1. Cultivate a Growth Mindset for Lifelong Fitness
Fitness Is a Skill You Learn, Not a Talent
Many people believe fitness is something you’re either naturally good at or not. However, in reality, fitness is a skill you develop—one that can be learned, practiced, improved upon, and changed over time.
Adopting a growth mindset means the willingness to start something new and learn “how” as you go. It also means seeing challenges and setbacks as opportunities for growth rather than reasons to quit.
Embrace the Process
Every fitness journey has ups and downs. So, instead of feeling defeated by a few missed workouts or slower-than-expected progress, use these moments as a chance to learn and adapt.
Example:
If you struggle to stick with early-morning workouts, experiment with lunchtime or evening sessions.
Where can you be resourceful, creative, or willing to learn something new so that exercise can be part of your daily life?
2. How to Start a Fitness Journey? Apply Simplicity
Set Micro-Goals
Start with small, achievable goals that fit into your busy schedule. Starting a fitness journey that lasts is about daily persistence; it’s not about how long or hard you exercise.
10-Minute Workouts:
These can be quick bodyweight exercises, stretching, or even a brisk walk.
Success Example:
Many runners start with just a few minutes of jogging and gradually build up to miles over time.
Include Ad Hoc Movement:
Take the stairs, park farther away, or do squats during TV commercials. Make movement a way of life instead of something that’s only done during a designated time.
Pair With Other Activities You Enjoy
Combine exercise with activities you already enjoy.
For Example, listen to podcasts or audiobooks, during a walk. Watch YouTube videos during a stationary bike session. If you’re socially inclined, make exercise part of your social life.
This pairing not only makes workouts more enjoyable, but it also supports consistency by linking movement to something you look forward to.
Create Rituals
Turn a fitness journey into a cherished part of your day by creating rituals.
Rituals elevate ordinary moments by infusing them with intention and purpose, transforming repetitive tasks into opportunities for reflection, joy, and greater understanding.
Rituals also provide structure, meaning, and consistency in your daily routines. This creates a sense of stability, helping to ground you amidst the unpredictability of life.
They also connect you to your values and goals, making it easier to stay aligned with what truly matters to you.
By savoring rituals you add richness to your life, creating a sense of luxury and a deeper appreciation for the present moment, which fosters wellbeing.
Two examples of fitness ritual are:
Morning Stretching:
Start your day with 5-10 minutes of gentle stretching to wake up your body. Morning stretching can be a simple way to maintain or boost flexibility and improve mood.
Evening Walks:
Use this time to unwind, reflect on your day, and savor the outdoors.
3. Engage in Exercise You Truly Love When Starting Your Fitness Journey
Joy Fuels Consistency
When exercise feels like a chore, it’s very easy to skip. But when you enjoy it, you’ll look forward to it and want to do it. Enjoying your exercise time is essential in starting a fitness journey that lasts.
Discover Activities That Light You Up
Experiment with different forms of movement to find what brings you joy:
- Dance classes, hiking, Pilates, nature walks, or specialized gym classes. Be open to ideas and try different things. (This is where a growth mindset comes in).
- Activities that engage your interests and passions make fitness feel like self-care and fun, rather than a chore or checkbox.
For more ideas on enjoying exercise, read our article “How to Make Working Out Fun and Joyful”
4. Challenge All-or-Nothing Thinking
Perfectionism Is the Enemy of Progress
Starting a fitness journey that lasts comes from commitment to progress and not needing perfection. This perspective allows you to build momentum without burning out or giving up.
The belief that you must “do it all” or “do it right” often leads to doing nothing. Break free from all-or-nothing thinking by focusing on smaller, yet consistent, actions.
Allow Realistic Alternatives
If you miss a workout, don’t throw in the towel. Opt for a quick walk, some stretching, or a few minutes of mindful movement.
- Remember: A little bit done often is what builds habits and therefore results over time.
5. Shift Your Self-Concept
The Power of Identity
Your self-concept is the ideas of yourself you hold in different areas of life, and it plays a significant role in the actions you choose or do not choose when starting a fitness journey.
To build your fitness self-concept and see yourself as someone who exercises everyday, you can practice the following:
- Instead of saying, “I’m trying to work out,” say, “I’m a woman who values movement and wellness.”
Embody Your New Self-Concept
To take it from an idea to something that you are living out, you need to practice embodiment of the new self-concept through action.
For example, start with small, consistent actions that align with your desired identity of “I’m a woman who values movement and wellness”.
Such as:
- Pack gym clothes the night before.
- Prioritize sleep to support recovery, performance, and overall wellness.
With time, shifting your self-concept by deliberately choosing who you want to be, leads to lasting habits and a lifestyle that supports life-long fitness.
6. Tap into Personal Power On Your Fitness Journey
What is Your Personal Power
Personal power is your ability to take intentional actions that are aligned with your values and desires. It’s also about influencing yourself through self-efficacy—the belief that you can achieve your desires.
Consider: where do you feel confident and capable in other areas of your life? Tap into the personal power you have in other areas and let it carry over into your fitness, i.e., “I can excel at this too.”
Fitness as Empowerment
Taking control of your wellbeing through fitness is a tangible way to build even more confidence and assert control in other areas of life.
For Example:
- Feeling strong and capable in your body can translate to greater leadership and decision-making skills in your career.
To keep you inspired, we recommend reflecting on your “why” for starting your fitness journey. Whether it’s to have more energy, better productivity, to reduce stress, feel more serenity, or feel confident in your own skin – connect with your deeper motivations.
You can also tie this back to a desired identity and how you want to see yourself. For example: “I am a woman who feels more empowered by taking care of myself”.
7. Know Your Potential Pitfalls and Address Them Ahead of Time
Time Constraints
For professional women starting a fitness journey, time and energy are often the biggest hurdles. Strategies to fit fitness into your schedule include:
- Prioritizing shorter workouts.
- Scheduling fitness activities like a work meeting or daily appointment.
Think ahead about difficulties you may have, and come up with strategies for them. Tie this back to a desired identity such as “I am a resourceful and creative woman who finds time to take care of herself.”
Flexibility Is Key
Life happens, and plans change. Instead of abandoning your goals after a missed workout or two, simply adjust and keep going.
Slow Progress Is Still Progress
Celebrate every small win, whether it’s an extra push-up, a longer walk, or simply showing up for yourself.
8. Embrace the Role of Recovery and Rest
Listen to Your Body
Recovery is just as important as exercise itself during a fitness journey. Incorporating rest days, easier days, and stretching days helps to prevent burnout, injuries, and keeps you energized.
The Science of Rest
Rest days allow your muscles to repair and grow, reducing the risk of injury and improving long-term performance. Rest days also help maintain motivation by allowing your mind to refocus as well.
9. Tie It All Together: Fitness as a Path to Holistic Wellness
There are two themes you need to embrace to start a fitness journey that lasts, and that leads to greater wellness in all areas of your life:
(1) Beyond the Scale
Fitness is about more than physical results. It’s a pathway to holistic wellbeing, including:
- Clearer thinking, improved focus, and better decision-making.
- Enhanced stress management and happier moods.
- Greater energy, vitality, and productivity.
When you focus on all the benefits of a fitness journey you find much deeper appreciation for it because you get so much out of it, and therefore, want to show up.
(2) Consistency Over Intensity
Your desired outcomes and lasting results come from showing up regularly; they don’t come from overexertion or extreme measures.
When you fall in love with the process of feeling good, you enjoy movement, and the results naturally follow.
A Sustainable Fitness Journey Is a By-Product of a Wellness Lifestyle
Starting a fitness journey that lasts means aligning it with your values, goals, and the life you want to create.
A fitness journey isn’t about a destination such as achieving a body goal, dress size, or number on the scale. Rather, it’s about what it gives back to you along the way- feeling empowered, nourished, and vibrant in your life.
At Wellbody Wellbeing, we believe in the art of slowing down to savor life, to prioritize wellness as a lifestyle, so that you can live a luxurious and elevated life through the benefits of self-care.
As you embark on your fitness journey, remember that it’s a beautiful and enriching part of the Wellbody Wellbeing lifestyle, which is a path to living your most vibrant and nourishing life.
So, how will you start your fitness journey today? Let it be simple, joyful, and uniquely yours.
For more transformative ways to create a Wellbody Wellbeing lifestyle that feels truly nourishing and aligned with health and happiness, download our complimentary guide.
